It is routine for military prosecutors to overcharge in courts-martial. They feel the more they can pile on the worse it makes the accused look. So that’s why you might see a charge of murder along with a charge of spitting on the side-walk.
One of the areas of frequent abuse is the use of inchoate crimes – primarily here conspiracy. The Army Court of Criminal Appeals has just issued an opinion in a case I defended at trial a couple of years ago. The case was tried in 2012, and the first stage of appeal was decided in February 2015. The next stage is CAAF.
In United States v. Willis, we had objected at trial to a conviction on multiple conspiracies, but the trial judge denied our motion. The prosecution had it’s way in overcharging on this issue. But that didn’t pass muster with the appeals court. In ruling for the defense the court repeated basic principles.